Colleen Van Rooy – President and Co-Founder
Colleen works at Sorenson Communications as a Scheduler. Having hearing loss herself, she loves all the hearing assistance technologies that are available today. Colleen lends a hand in many different volunteer capacities including assisting at Pillar’s, a homeless shelter in Appleton, and volunteering her time at both the Wisconsin State and Fox Valley Chapter of the Hearing Loss Association of America. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband Chuck and their four children, three of which have hearing loss too. Colleen enjoys working with our Hear in the Fox Cities team helping children receive hearing aids and living life to its full potential!
Travis Resch – Vice President
Travis is a Quality Process Specialist at Fytertech Nonwovens for Spill Control Product solutions. He was born two months premature and the end result was 40-60% hearing loss. From the ages 16 to 30 Travis went without hearing aids. Finally, his girlfriend (wife now) convinced him to get new hearing aids, and he has never looked back. He has a great job, an amazing wife and two wonderful daughters. He believes that no child with a hearing disorder should go without hearing aids. His goal is to do whatever is necessary to raise awareness and monies to help support the cause for Hear in the Fox Cities.
Andrew Hetzel Jr. – Treasurer
Mr. Andy Hetzel Jr. is the owner and CEO of Fytertech Nonwovens, a manufacturer and marketer of janitorial paper and spill control products, headquartered in Green Bay, WI. Mr. Hetzel serves on the Hear in the Fox Cities board as Treasurer and member of the fundraising committee. As someone with a longstanding severe hearing loss who has worn hearing aids since childhood, helping children and young adults obtain hearing aids is a mission that is personal to him.
Jennifer Sartori – Secretary
Jennifer has been a teacher of the D/deaf and hard of hearing for the past 30 years. She also received her master’s degree in teaching students who are English language learners. She has worked as a community interpreter and is currently the Head Chair for the Northcentral Technical College in the Educational Interpreter Program board. She is a passionate volunteer spending time as a Fox Cities Victim Crisis Responder, providing emotional support and resources to those who find themselves in extremely difficult situations. She is also a volunteer guardian for two young men with hearing loss. Jennifer strives to provide a wrap-around support to those she serves with hearing loss advocating for social, emotional, and academic rights. She wants to be part of the movement to provide hearing aids to all in need because she sees first-hand the impact not wearing them has on the students and adults she serves.
Dr. Juliette Sterkens – Public Advocacy
Dr. Juliette Sterkens retired from her private audiology practice in Oshkosh, WI to volunteer as the National Hearing Loop Advocate for the Hearing Loss Association of America. In this capacity she presents at professional conferences and consumer events on the benefits and the use of hearing aids and hearing loops. She serves on the HLAA National Get in the Hearing Loop (GITHL) committee and is actively involved with the Oshkosh Food Corp membership and capital campaigns. Dr. Sterkens holds a Doctor of Audiology degree from Arizona School of Health Sciences. For her efforts she has received several awards including the WI Audiologist of the Year, the American Academy of Audiology Presidential Award, the Humanitarian of the Year Award from the Arizona School of Health Sciences and the Larry Mauldin Award from Beltone, part of GN ReSound. She is the creator of www.loopwisconsin.com an informational website for consumers, AV specialists and hearing care professionals.
Annie Knudson – Member at Large
Annie is a devoted mother and wife. She lives in Appleton with her husband and son, Isaiah. Annie wanted to become involved because Isaiah got his first hearing aids with help from Hear in the Fox Cities. We can’t ever stop thinking about how grateful and thankful we are for the help we got from Hear in the Fox Cities. Annie has had severe hearing loss her entire life. She grew up poor in South Korea. Annie was sent to the US with her younger brother when she was 12 and didn’t get adopted until she was 15. She got her first hearing aids at 16 years old and it changed her life dramatically. Annie has worked in Cosmetology and in child care. She currently is homeschooling Isaiah, but when he was in school, Annie was heavily involved with community outreach and managing school fund raising events. Annie wants to help other families like hers. To help people with hearing problems so they can have a better, happy life.
Amanda Huycke – Member at Large
Pete Drummond – Member at Large
I work for Starkey, which is one of the top hearing aid manufacturers in the world. I travel throughout Wisconsin meeting with Audiologist and Hearing Instrument Specialists and teaching them about the latest features and accessories Starkey has to offer. Before working for Starkey, I worked in an office setting dispensing hearing aids for about 3.5 years. I believe I would be a great fit for the board not just because of my background in the hearing industry, but because I was born with a hearing loss as well. I was fit for my first set of hearing aids when I was about five years old and it changed my life. I want to be part of a team that is dedicated to helping kids hear better in the community because I realize firsthand how important it is.
Dr. Stephanie Long – Co-Founder and Advocacy
Dr. Stephanie Long is an Audiologist and one of the Founders of Hear in the Fox Cities. She received her Bachelors degree from the University of Iowa, Masters degree from Northwestern University, and her Doctor of Audiology from the University of Arizona. Dr. Long has helped individuals with hearing loss for over 20 years, with 14 spent caring for children in the school setting. Her work with Hear in the Fox Cities has earned her many awards including Audiologist of the Year and Outstanding Services Award from the Wisconsin Speech Language Hearing Association (ASHA). She also recently won the Wisconsin 2019 nominee for the ASHA Louis M. DiCarlo Award and a finalist spot for the 2019 Oticon Focus on People Awards for her work through Hear in the Fox Cities.
Dr. Brittany Uitenbroek – Advocacy & Web Master
Dr. Brittany Uitenbroek is an Audiologist in Stevens Point, WI working with both children and adults with hearing loss. She received her Bachelor’s in Communicative Disorders from University of Wisconsin Stevens Point and her Doctor of Audiology from Northern Illinois University. She is also state licensed, board certified from the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association, and is a member of the American Academy of Audiology. Knowing that untreated hearing loss can significantly impact children’s speech and language and academic performance, she supports Hear in the Fox Cities mission to provide amplification assistance to those in need so that every child may hear.